Termon

Last updated

Termon
An Tearmann
Village
Antearmann.JPG
View of Termon and its church
Ireland adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Termon
Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 55°01′47″N7°46′43″W / 55.029744°N 7.778664°W / 55.029744; -7.778664
Country Ireland
Province Ulster
County County Donegal
Government
   Dáil Éireann Donegal
Time zone UTC+0 (WET)
  Summer (DST) UTC-1 (IST (WEST))
Irish Grid Reference C166178

Termon (Irish : An Tearmann, meaning 'place of sanctuary') [1] is a village in the north of County Donegal, Ireland.

Contents

Geography

Termon is located eight miles from Letterkenny, Donegal's main town and seven miles from Creeslough. Termon is made up of many townlands including Currin, Doon, Drumlaurgagh, Gortnalaragh, Drumbrick, Drumoughill, Cloncarney, Terhillion, Gortnalaragh, Clonkilly, Knocknabollan, Fawans, Drumdeevin, Drumfin, Barnes, Stragraddy, Ballybuninabber, Letterfad, Goal and Gurtin, Loughaskerry.

There are several hills close to Termon, including Lough Salt (469m), the hills of Barnes-Crockmore (the "Resting Bishop") at 324m, 349m & 307m respectively, and Stragraddy mountain (285m). All the hills have views along Donegal's Atlantic coast line or into the higher mountain country of Muckish (666m) and Errigal (749m).[ citation needed ]

Rivers and Loughs

Sport

Termon Gaelic Athletic Association was founded in 1963. All age groups play and train at the local pitch "The Burn Road" [2] The Termon GAA adult team plays in the Donegal Senior Championship. The Termon minor GAA team were 2019 Donegal minor Champions and were defeated on 1 January 2020 by a single point by Lavey Derry in the Ulster Minor final in Belfast. Termon LGFA adult team were crowned Tesco Club All-Ireland Champions in 2014, defeating Mournabbey of Cork in the Final. Termon LGFA have won two Ulster Club Championships one in 2010 and one in 2014 beating Donaghmoyne of Monaghan in both finals. The Termon Ladies team were 2019 Donegal champions making them senior county champions for a sixth time they competed in the 2019 Ulster Final being defeated by Donaghmoyne of Monaghan by a single point. Termon currently fields 23 teams at all age groups male and female and schools teams. [3]

Historical sites

Religious sites

Several sites around Termon are significant to the Roman Catholic faith in Donegal.

Termon Roman Catholic Church Termon R.C. Church, Co. Donegal - geograph.org.uk - 1386314.jpg
Termon Roman Catholic Church

Doon Well

Doon Well (Irish : Tobar an Dúin) was established by Lector O'Friel sometime around the 1670s. Doon Well's origins are pre-Christian:

Mass Rocks

Mass rocks (Irish : Carraig an Aifrinn) were used during the religious persecution of the Catholic Church in Ireland that began under Henry VIII and ended only with Catholic Emancipation in 1829. There are thought to be several more in the Termon area and were generally in areas were people could meet, practice their faith and post a look out to warn the congregation. Priests usually said Mass under pain of death, if they were caught, the priest hunters would put their quarry into a barrel of nails and throw him off the nearby cliff still called 'Binn an tSagairt' or Hill of the Priest. There is also a mass rock in the Terhillion townland of Termon, Terhillion (Tirkillin) means place of little huts or churchyard. The town land of Fawans has a mass rock which is high up in the townland.

The Rock of Doon

Doon Rock (120m approx) is the site where 25 O'Donnells were inaugurated as Chief of the Name and Lord of Tír Chonaill from Eighneachan in 1200 to Niall Garbh Ó Domhnaill in 1603.

While describing how Red Hugh O'Donnell was inaugurated on 3 May 1592, Timothy T. O'Donnell has written, "The inauguration of the O'Donnell as King of Tyrconnell was both civil and religious in nature. The ceremony took place on the great Rock of Doon which is one mile west of Kilmacrenan, from which one is give a breathtaking view of the surrounding country. It began with the religious rites in the church of the nearby monastery and holy well singing Psalms and hymns in honor of Christ and St. Columba for the success of the Prince's sovereignty. Standing on the Rock surrounded by nobles and his clansmen, the Prince received an oath in which he promised to preserve the Church and the laws of the land. The Prince also vowed to deliver the succession of the realm peacefully to his Tanist (his successor). O'Ferghil, the hereditary warden and abbot of Kilmacrenan, performed the religious ceremony of the inauguration of The O'Donnell. O'Gallagher was the Prince's Marshal and O'Clery was the Ollamh, or scholarly lawyer who presented to him the book containing the laws and customs of the land and the straight white wand symbolizing the moral rectitude demanded of his judgments and rule." Then, in honour of the Holy Trinity, Hugh would have surveyed his Clan lands as he walked three times sunwise around the peak of Rock of Doon, after which all the Irish clans present loudly acclaimed him as "O'Donnell!" [4]

Cahir O'Doherty, Lord of Inishowen, was also killed in battle there by Sir Arthur Chichester in 1608, while leading an uprising. This event was a significant influence on the formulation of plans for the plantation of Ulster.[ citation needed ]

The cross and a panoramic view of Termon Antearmanncross.JPG
The cross and a panoramic view of Termon

St. Columba's Chapel

Termon is served by St. Columba's Chapel (1854–present). The parish priest is Fr Patrick McHugh. [5]

Ethne's Well

Ethne's Well (Irish : Turas an Ri), in the Barnes townland, is named after Columba's mother. Ethne is strongly associated with the area. This holy well had stations performed on 9 June for nine nights.[ citation needed ]

St. Glassan

St. Glassan (Irish : Glasán)[ citation needed ] is a saint of the parish of whom little is known. The "Martyrology of Donegal" gives his feast day as 1 October. The grave of Father Glasán (Frater Cassians) is thought to be in the Stragraddy townland of Termon.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">County Donegal</span> County in Ireland

County Donegal is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconnell or Tirconaill, after the historic territory. Donegal County Council is the local council and Lifford is the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell</span> Irish king (1575–1608)

Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, was an Irish Gaelic lord, the last King of Tyrconnell. He was the younger brother of Hugh Roe O'Donnell and the 1st Earl of Tyrconnell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donegal (town)</span> Town in County Donegal, Ulster, Ireland

Donegal is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. The name was also historically spelt 'Dunnagall'. Although Donegal gave its name to the county, now Lifford is the county town. From the 15th until the early 17th century, Donegal was the 'capital' of Tyrconnell, a Gaelic kingdom controlled by the O'Donnell dynasty of the Northern Uí Néill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fanad</span> Peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland

Fanad is a peninsula that lies between Lough Swilly and Mulroy Bay on the north coast of County Donegal, Ireland. The origin of the name Fanad derives from the Irish language word Fána for "sloping ground". It is also referred to as Fannet or Fannett in older records. There are an estimated 700 people living in Fanad and 30% Irish speakers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">O'Donnell dynasty</span> Irish clan

The O'Donnell dynasty were the dominant Irish clan of the kingdom of Tyrconnell in Ulster in the north of medieval and early modern Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derrygonnelly</span> Human settlement in Northern Ireland

Derrygonnelly is a small village and townland in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. Near Lower Lough Erne, the village was home to 680 people at the 2011 Census and dates to the Plantation era. It is situated within Fermanagh and Omagh district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">O'Doherty family</span> Irish clan

The O'Doherty family of County Donegal is an Irish clan who were a prominent sept of the Northern Uí Néill's Cenél Conaill, and one of most powerful clans of Tír Connaill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Finnian of Movilla</span> Irish missionary (c. 495–589)

Finnian of Movilla was an Irish Christian missionary. His feast day is 10 September.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tyrconnell</span> 400s–1607 kingdom of Gaelic Ireland

Tyrconnell, also spelled Tirconnell and Tirconaill, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland. It is associated geographically with present-day County Donegal, which was officially named County Tirconaill between 1922 and 1927. At times it also included parts of County Fermanagh, County Sligo, County Leitrim, County Tyrone and County Londonderry at its greatest extent. The kingdom represented the core homeland of the Cenél Conaill people of the Northern Uí Néill and although they ruled, there were smaller groups of other Gaels in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pettigo</span> Village in County Donegal, Ireland and County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

Pettigo, also spelt Pettigoe, is a small village and townland on the border of County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, and County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is bisected by the Termon River which is part of the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downings</span> Gaeltacht village in County Donegal, Ireland

Downings or Downies is a Gaeltacht village and townland on the Rosguill peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland. The village is on the shores of Sheephaven Bay on the north coast of Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slieve Rushen</span> Mountain on the border of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland

Slieve Rushen is a mountain which straddles the border between County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland and County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. It is also called Slieve Russell or Ligavegra. It has an elevation of 404 metres above sea-level. OS 1/50k Mapsheet: 27A & 26. Grid Ref: H234 226. The mountain is made up of grey limestone with a cap of sandstone and shales and is extensively quarried by local companies. The surface is mostly covered with peat, conifer forests and grazing fields. The mountain contains several caves and swallow-holes including Pollnagollum and Tory Hole which are a popular destination for potholers, both situate in Legavreagra townland. It forms part of the Slieve Rushen Bog Natural Heritage Area. A recent addition to the mountain is the Slieve Rushen Wind Farm for generating electricity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aghanaglack</span> Townland

Aghanaglack or Aghnaglack, is a townland in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is situated in the civil parish of Boho, as well as Fermanagh and Omagh district.

The White Rod, White Wand, Rod of Inauguration, or Wand of Sovereignty, in the Irish language variously called the slat na ríghe and slat tighearnais, was the primary symbol of a Gaelic king or lord's legitimate authority and the principal prop used in his inauguration ceremony. First documented in the 12th century Life of Máedóc of Ferns, but assumed to have been used long before then, it is last documented in Ireland in the early 17th century. In Scotland the rod was used into the 13th century for the inauguration of its last Gaelic-speaking kings, and for the Norse-Gaelic Lords of the Isles into the 15th.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnes Halt railway station</span>

Barnes Halt railway station served a location midway between Creeslough and Kilmacrenan in County Donegal, Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clan McGrath</span> Irish clan

The McGrath family is an Irish clan. The name is derived from the Gaelic Mac Craith, recorded in other written texts as Mag Craith, Mag Raith and Macraith, including the Annals of the Four Masters and the Annals of Ulster. McGrath is a surname of ancient Irish origin, and is borne by the descendants of a number of septs, each with a common origin in the Kingdom of Thomond, a kingdom that existed before the Norman invasion and was located in north Munster.

The Donegal Senior Ladies' Football Championship is an annual LGFA competition organised by Donegal LGFA among the top ladies' football clubs in County Donegal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kilmacrenan (barony)</span> Barony in Ulster, Ireland

Kilmacrenan, sometimes spelled Kilmacrennan, is a barony in County Donegal, Ireland. Baronies were mainly cadastral rather than administrative units, which acquired modest local taxation and spending functions in the 19th century before being superseded by higher units under the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898. Kilmacrenan is the largest barony in Ireland by land area.

The Burn Dale is a burn or small river in the east of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. The burn is also known in English as the Dale Burn, the Burn Deele, the Burndale River, the Deele River or the River Deele. In the Ulster Scots dialect, a 'burn' is a stream or small river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shrove, County Donegal</span> Hamlet and townland in Inishowen, County Donegal, in Ulster, Ireland

Shrove is a coastal hamlet and townland in Inishowen in the north of County Donegal in the north-west of Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. The hamlet is located a short distance to the north of Greencastle in the north-east of Inishowen, a peninsula on the north coast of Ireland. The name of both the hamlet and the townland is also sometimes written as Shroove, and is sometimes written as Stroove by some government bodies.

References

  1. "An Tearmann/Termon". Placenames Database of Ireland (logainm.ie). Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  2. https://www.facebook.com/termon.gaa?fref=ts [ dead link ][ user-generated source ]
  3. "An Tearmann – Termon". Donegal GAA. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  4. Timothy T. O'Donnell (2001), Swords Around the Cross: Ireland's Defense of Faith and Fatherland 1594-1603, Christendom Press. Pages 48-49.
  5. Maguire, Stephen (31 August 2012). "Duffy funeral told Donegal win would honour memory". The Irish Times. Retrieved 31 August 2012. Among the 1,500 mourners at yesterday's funeral at St Columba's Church were Donegal GAA players Michael Murphy, Karl Lacey, Mark McHugh and Brendan Boyle. [...] Members of Mr Duffy's club Termon provided a guard of honour to and from the funeral Mass, as did a number of other clubs including Glenswilly and Gaoth Dobhair.